Avenue Q is an American musical in two acts, conceived by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, who wrote the music and lyrics. The book was written by Jeff Whitty and the show was directed by Jason Moore. Avenue Q is an "autobiographical and biographical" coming-of-age parable, addressing and satirizing the issues and anxieties associated with entering adulthood. Its characters lament that as children, they were assured by their parents, and by children's television programs such as PBS's Sesame Street, that they were "special" and "could do anything"; but as adults, they have discovered to their surprise and dismay that in the real world their options are limited, and they are no more "special" than anyone else.[1] The musical is notable for the use of puppets, animated by unconcealed puppeteers, alongside human actors.

Avenue Q's unique presentation requires substantially more suspension of disbelief by audience members than normal. The cast consists of three human characters and eleven puppet characters who interact as if human, Sesame Street-style. The puppets are animated and voiced by actor/puppeteers who are present, unconcealed, onstage, but remain "invisible" relative to the storyline. That is, the puppets and human characters completely ignore the puppeteers, and the audience is expected to do so as well. This can be a challenge, as puppeteering mechanics are at times complex: The same puppet may be operated by different puppeteers in different scenes, and the actor voicing the puppet may not be the one animating it. (To assist in the illusion the puppeteers wear plain gray clothing, in contrast to the human characters' colorful costumes.) One puppeteer sometimes voices two or more puppets simultaneously. Conversely, the so-called "live-hands" puppets (see Puppets) require two puppeteers — again, in full view of the audience.

All of the characters, puppet and human, represent "amalgamations of things and feelings [Marx and Lopez had been] going through personally."[1] The characters are young adults, searching for their "purpose" in life, and facing real-world adult problems with uncertain outcomes, as opposed to the simplistic problems and invariably happy resolutions faced by characters on children's television programming. Much of the show's ironic humor arises from its contrasts with Sesame Street, a metaphor of the contrasts between childhood and adulthood, and between the children's TV world and the real world. The story line presupposes the existence of "monsters" and talking animals; and human actors sing, dance, and interact with puppets, both human and non-human, as if they were sentient beings, in a light-hearted, quasi-fantasy environment. (No attempt is made to explain why seven of the human characters are played by puppets, while the other three are played by actual humans.) However, the characters face real-world problems; they use abundant profanity in dialogue and musical lyrics; there are episodes of "full puppet nudity" (and puppet sex); and many songs and sub-plots address decidedly adult themes, such as racism, pornography, homosexuality, and schadenfreude.

The show also employs a highly unusual plot device: a real-life celebrity inserted as a fictional character within the story. Gary Coleman, the juvenile actor who played Arnold Jackson in the 1980s American sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, and later famously sued his parents and business advisers over misappropriation of his assets,[9] is portrayed (by a woman in most productions) as an adult, forced to accept a job as a building superintendent in the run-down Avenue Q neighborhood due to his dire financial situation. The show's creators have explained this trope as an illustration of "one of the most important themes in Avenue Q...that life isn't as easy as we've been led to believe...and who better to symbolize the oh-so-special-as-a-kid/but-not-so-special-as-an-adult thing we all faced than Gary Coleman? He's practically the poster child."[1]

Marx and Lopez have also said that they originally intended to offer the Gary Coleman role to Coleman himself, and he expressed interest in accepting it; but he never showed up for a meeting scheduled to discuss it.[1] Coleman later threatened repeatedly to sue Avenue Q producers for their depiction of him, but ultimately did not.[10]

When Coleman died on May 28, 2010, casts of both the Off-Broadway production in New York City and the second national tour in Dallas dedicated that evening's performances to his memory.[11][12] The Coleman character remains in the show with modified dialogue.[13]

Princeton, a recent college graduate, is anxious to discover his purpose in life; but first, he must find an apartment and a job, with no work experience and an English degree. ("What Do You Do with a B.A. in English?") Beginning his search on Avenue A, he finally finds an affordable apartment on Avenue Q. His new neighbors are Kate Monster, a kindergarten teaching assistant; Rod, an anal-retentive Republican banker, and Nicky, his slacker roommate; Brian, an aspiring comedian recently laid off from his day job; Christmas Eve, Brian's Japanese fiancée and a therapist with no clients; Trekkie Monster, a surly recluse who surfs the Internet all day in search of porn; and Gary Coleman, the building superintendent. Arguments ensue over whose life sucks the most. ("It Sucks to Be Me")

Nicky, who is straight, suspects that Rod is gay, and assures Rod it is okay with him if he is; but Rod insists he is not. ("If You Were Gay") Princeton finds a lucky penny and longs to discover his purpose in life. ("Purpose") Kate dreams of starting a "Monstersori" school for young "people of fur". Princeton innocently asks Kate if she and Trekkie are related, since they are both monsters, but Kate angrily pronounces his assumption racist. Princeton, taken aback, counters that Kate's Monstersori School would discriminate against non-monsters. They and the neighbors agree that racism is an adult reality. (“Everyone's a Little Bit Racist”)

Princeton receives money from his parents, and the Bad Idea Bears, two charming troublemakers, convince him to spend it on beer. Kate's boss Mrs. Thistletwat assigns Kate to teach the next morning's kindergarten class, her first solo teaching opportunity. She decides her lesson will be the Internet, and all its educational attributes, but Trekkie Monster explains another reality of adulthood: lots of adults—even "normal people"—use it to find pornography. ("The Internet is for Porn")

Princeton gives Kate a mixtape. His song selections are puzzling, making her wonder what message he is trying to send, but eventually she decides that he must like her. ("Mixtape") Sure enough, he invites her on a date to the Around the Clock Café. Brian, the café's MC, does his raunchy standup act. ("I'm Not Wearing Underwear Today") He then introduces Lucy the Slut, a skanky chanteuse who wows the guys, especially Princeton, with a seductive cabaret number. ("Special") The Bad Idea Bears suggest that Kate and Princeton order some "harmless" Long Island Iced Teas, and once Kate is totally inebriated, that Princeton take her home to bed.

Kate and Princeton have enthusiastic, high-decibel sex. Gary fields angry calls from other tenants but refuses to intercede. ("You Can Be as Loud as the Hell You Want When You're Makin' Love") Meanwhile, Rod hears Nicky say, "I love you, Rod," in his sleep, and is jubilant—but eventually realizes it was he who was dreaming. Kate and Princeton profess their mutual love, and Princeton gives Kate his lucky penny. ("Fantasies Come True")

The next morning, a hung-over Kate misses her teaching assignment. Mrs. Thistletwat berates her, and Kate angrily quits her job before she can be fired. Christmas Eve decides unilaterally that it is time she and Brian were married. At the wedding Nicky blurts out his suspicion that Rod is gay. Rod, furious, insists he has a girlfriend named Alberta in Vancouver ("My Girlfriend Who Lives in Canada") and tells Nicky he is no longer welcome in their apartment.

When Kate catches Christmas Eve's wedding bouquet, Princeton panics, confesses a fear of commitment, and asks Kate if they can just be friends. Kate retorts that she has plenty of friends, and breaks off their relationship. ("There's a Fine, Fine Line")

A despondent Princeton has been holed up in his apartment after breaking up with Kate, but is coaxed out by the neighbors. ("There is Life Outside Your Apartment") Lucy is looking for a place to crash and seduces the rebounding Princeton. Kate is angry, but Christmas Eve explains that she would not be angry if she were not in love with him. ("The More You Ruv Someone") Kate writes a note to Princeton suggesting that they rendezvous at the Empire State Building and leaves it with Lucy, who promptly destroys it. A homeless Nicky laments his fate to Gary, who confesses that he is deriving pleasure from Nicky's misfortune. ("Schadenfreude")

On the Empire State Building's viewing platform, Kate, thinking that Princeton has stood her up, throws his lucky penny away. A hundred stories below, Lucy, walking by on Fifth Avenue, is knocked unconscious by the penny. Kate and Princeton unsuccessfully attempt to work out their problems over Lucy's comatose body. Rod is too proud to accept Nicky's repeated apologies, despite clearly missing him, and tearfully consults Christmas Eve. Princeton, Kate, and Nicky dream of returning to happier times. ("I Wish I Could Go Back to College")

Princeton gives a still-homeless, panhandling Nicky a quarter, and marvels at how fantastic he feels. Since thinking only about himself has gotten him nowhere, he decides to raise money to build Kate's Monstersori School. He solicits everyone, even breaking the fourth wall to shake down the audience, ("The Money Song") with disappointing results; but Trekkie Monster, recalling his own traumatic school experience, donates ten million dollars—explaining to the astonished cast, "In volatile market, only stable investment is porn!" ("School for Monsters/The Money Song (Reprise)")

Kate joyfully opens her new school. Brian lands a consulting job and Christmas Eve finally has a paying client (Rod), so the newlyweds move to a better neighborhood: Flushing, Queens. Rod finally comes out, to no one's particular surprise, and takes Nicky back in. Nicky finds Rod a boyfriend—Ricky, a muscle-bound hunk who otherwise looks and sounds exactly like Nicky. The Bad Idea Bears discover Scientology. Lucy, recovered from her head injury, becomes a born-again Christian and takes a vow of chastity. Kate and Princeton agree to give their relationship another go. ("There's a Fine, Fine Line (Reprise)")

A new college graduate inquires about the vacancy in the building, ("What Do You Do with a BA in English (Reprise)") and Princeton has an epiphany: Maybe his purpose is to pass on everything he has learned about real life in a Broadway musical! Everybody, especially the new guy, immediately ridicules him. The cast reminds Princeton that in the real world many people never find their purpose; but life goes on, and everything—both good and bad—is "only for now." ("For Now")

Eight additional songs were written for Avenue Q or associated promotions, but are not part of the show itself.

"Tear It Up and Throw It Away": Originally performed early in the first act, between "What Do You Do with a BA in English?" and "If You Were Gay"; Kate is called for jury duty, and Nicky advises her to ignore the summons, pretending it was lost in the mail. ("Your civic duty? Who gives a doody?") Kate tears up the summons and is ticketed for littering. The number was cut during Off Broadway rehearsals because it had no relevance to the plot, and because, according to Stephanie D'Abruzzo, there was no judicious way to dispose of the paper scraps, which remained onstage throughout Act One.[15] The cut came so late that early promotional materials included references to the song, and its main melody can be heard underscoring dialog in "The Money Song" on the original cast recording. It was included on a CD that accompanied the original souvenir program, but not on the cast recording. An original audio clip is available on YouTube.[16]

"Time": A video created for the London production, and originally shown on the on-stage video screens during intermission, just prior to the second act curtain; Nicky (Simon Lipkin) sits on the toilet in the theatre's men's room at intermission, singing about all the "chores" he is getting done between acts. Several audience members waiting to use the stall become increasingly annoyed. British comedian Matt Lucas has a cameo role. The song was cut during early previews for unspecified reasons, but remained on the CD that accompanied the souvenir brochure, and was shown at the final West End performance on 30 October 2010. A video can be viewed on YouTube.[17]

"Rod's Dilemma": Written for Tony Award voters, this song spoofs Avenue Q's competition for the 2004 Tony for Best Musical, and the entire Tony voting process. In the Rotary Club presidential election, Rod cannot decide whether to vote for the guy he has a crush on (symbolizing The Boy from Oz), a wealthy man (Wicked), or an old friend (Caroline, or Change). The neighbors advise him against voting "for your friends, 'cause they say you should vote for the candidate you think is good." The song was a part of the production's successful Tony Award campaign, called "Q '04 Now! Vote Your Heart!".[18][19] An audio cut is available on YouTube.[20]

"Only in Vegas": This parody of Las Vegas-style show tunes was written to promote the Las Vegas production. It featured Rick Lyon operating a Steve Wynn puppet, who tells the cast of Avenue Q how happy they will be in Las Vegas. The song was performed on the Regis and Kelly syndicated television show and in some press and media events.

"Rod's Christmas": Found on the CD Broadway's Greatest Gifts: Carols for a Cure, Vol. 5: Rod headlines at the "Don't Tell Daddy's Cabaret and Night Club" (a parody of the New York piano bar Don't Tell Mama, which is named for a song from the musical Cabaret). Rod sings that Christmas is the time of year where he can combine his two great loves, "Christmas carols and show tunes."

"The Holi-daze": Found on the CD Broadway's Greatest Gifts: Carols for a Cure, Vol. 8. Written by Michael Patrick Walker and Phoebe Kreutz (who both worked on the Broadway and Off Broadway productions of Avenue Q), the members of the company sing about how they cope with the stresses and problems of the Holiday season. The song does not feature any characters from the show, but was recorded by several of the original Avenue Q cast members and band members, and was sub-titled "Drinkin' Our Way Through The Holidays."

"Christmas": "Purpose" with new, festive lyrics. Written by the company of Avenue Q/London for Theatrecares' "West End Christmas" charity event. It is on a special CD, but can also be heard at Jon Robyns's Web site.[21]

"How Much Do the People in Your Neighborhood Make?": A parody on the classic Sesame Street song, "Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood", the song was written very early in the show's history, and dropped when the original television show format was abandoned in favor of a stage production.[2]

The Avenue Q puppets, which cost up to $10,000 each, and require up to 120 hours of hand fabrication per character,[22] were designed and built by original cast member Rick Lyon.[23] Lyon's company, Lyon Puppets, continues to build and maintain the puppets used in all North American productions, and several of the international productions, including those from the UK, Australia, Mexico, Argentina and Brazil, while supervising the construction of those from the Finnish and Swedish productions. Their unusually sturdy construction, with double-stitching, reinforced seams, steel boning, and custom fake fur and feathers, is necessitated by the rigors of an eight-shows-per-week performance schedule.

Single Rod: Princeton, Kate Monster, NewcomerDouble Rod: Rod, Lucy, The Bad Idea Bears
Rod puppets consist of a head and a torso with two arms, at least one of which is movable for gestures. The puppeteer controls the puppet's head and mouth with his or her dominant hand, and holds one or two rods in the other hand, each of which is connected to one of the puppet's moveable arms. The rod puppets come in two variations: the "single rod" puppets, which have one moveable arm, with the other "posed" in a permanent gesture or attached to the puppet's torso; and the "double rod" puppets, for which both arms are moveable, each arm controlled by a single rod.[24]

Nicky, Trekkie Monster, Mrs. Thistletwat, Ricky
Live-hands puppets require two puppeteers, each of whom contributes one hand and arm dressed with a long sleeve and glove matching the puppet's costume, which become the arms and hands of the puppet. The speaking puppeteer controls the puppet's left hand, head, and mouth, while the second, silent operator controls the right hand. (Sides are sometimes reversed if the speaking puppeteer is left-handed.) During the show, one puppeteer will sometimes leave to take over another puppet, leaving the live-hands puppet with a single operator and only one functioning hand. In a variation, one or both of the puppet's hands can be attached to its torso to permit operation by a single puppeteer.

Avenue Q opened on Broadway at the John Golden Theatre on July 31, 2003, following previews from July 10. The production was directed by Jason Moore and choreographed by Ken Roberson, with set design by Anna Louizos, costume design by Mirena Rada, lighting design by Howell Binkley, musical supervision by Stephen Oremus, musical direction by Gary Adler, and puppet design by Rick Lyon. It was produced by Kevin McCollum, Robyn Goodman, and Jeffrey Seller. The show was nominated for six Tony Awards and won three, in the categories of Best Musical, Best Original Score, and Best Original Book.

After 22 previews and 2,534 regular performances, it closed on September 13, 2009.[4] As of June 21, 2009, the production had grossed over $117 million and had returned profits of $23.5 million to its investors.[4] (All of the money collected from the audience during "The Money Song" is donated to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.)

In September 2005, Avenue Q opened at the Wynn Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas under a production contract that precluded Avenue Q tours in North America during the Las Vegas run. A new 1,200 seat theater was built especially for the show. Variations from the Broadway production included a new reprise of "It Sucks to Be Me" for Princeton at the top of Act Two, some new orchestrations, a trimmed "The Money Song," and a new rock arrangement of "There Is Life Outside Your Apartment," as well as a few jokes written specifically for Las Vegas audiences.

Attendance was well below anticipated levels, due at least in part to the constant turnover of tourists in Las Vegas, which rendered the cultivation of word-of-mouth publicity virtually impossible. In mid-January 2006 the show was cut to 90 minutes and the intermission was removed. Hotel owner Steve Wynn promoted the show heavily, at one point decorating 20 city cabs in orange fuzz and large white "Q" letters. All such efforts were unsuccessful, and the show closed on May 28, 2006 after a nine-month run,[26] terminating the exclusivity agreement and opening the way for national tours.

A Cameron Mackintosh-produced version of Avenue Q premiered in 2006 in the West End at the Noël Coward Theatre (formerly the Albery Theatre). Several adaptive changes were made for British audiences, including portrayal of the Gary Coleman character by a male actor. The production ran 1,179 performances through March 2009, then reopened in June 2009 at the Gielgud Theatre. After a further 327 performances, the show moved in March 2010 to the Wyndham's Theatre,[27][28] where it closed on October 30, 2010 after a five-year run.[29]

The first national tour began at the Spreckels Theatre in San Diego, California on June 30, 2007.Broadway director and choreographer Jason Moore and Ken Roberson returned in those roles, as did most other Broadway creative team members. The tour played a total of 721 performances in 22 cities, and closed at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center in Appleton, Wisconsin on May 10, 2009.[30]

Sell A Door Theatre Company launched a British revival of the show in April 2014, which ran for 3 weeks at Greenwich Theatre, followed by a 12-week UK tour.[35] The tour differed from the West End production in that Gary Coleman, like in the Broadway production, was portrayed by a female actress.

Avenue Q: School Edition, a collaboration of the creators of Avenue Q and Music Theatre International, was created to facilitate production of the musical by high school drama departments. Most of the profanity and sexual themes are removed from the script and score, and two songs ("My Girlfriend Who Lives in Canada" and "You Can Be As Loud as the Hell You Want") are removed. "The Internet is For Porn" is replaced with "Social Life is Online," and Trekkie's obsession with pornography is replaced by an obsession with social networking sites. The characters Mrs. Thistletwat and Lucy the Slut are renamed Mrs. Butz and Lucy, respectively. The scenes involving the Bad Idea Bears are altered to put less emphasis on alcohol. MTI states that these alterations make the musical easier for high schools to perform, while at the same time, maintaining the original intent and integrity of the piece.[38][39]

On September 30, 2004, the day of the first Bush–Kerry presidential debate, on a stage set up in Times Square, the cast of Avenue Q presented their version of the debate, called Avenue Q&A, with portrait puppets of Bush and Kerry created by Rick Lyon. Eighteen television networks covered the event. Lyon operated the Bush puppet, while Jennifer Barnhart operated the Kerry puppet. Each puppet sang responses to questions from Avenue Q's concerned residents, and the whole cast sang "Vote Your Heart" (see Other Songs above) to the rain-drenched crowd.[citation needed]

In another World AIDS Day benefit in 2005, the original cast of Avenue Q and the cast of the Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof presented a 10-minute spoof of both musicals called "Avenue Jew."[41] As a brief prologue, Trekkie Monster poorly plays the Fiddler theme, pauses a moment; shrugs, and then eats the fiddle. Tevye, his wife Golde, and his two remaining daughters, having immigrated to the USA, arrive on Avenue Jew, an area inhabited by Jewish versions of the Avenue Q characters. In the song "The Puppets/The Humans," the humans are fed up with the puppets upstaging them. Jewish-American Princeton arrives asking "What do you do with a B.A. in Yiddish?" One of Tevye's daughter's, Shprintze, falls in love with Princeton, but Tevye forbids their union even when he likes him. Princeton only says "I know, I know. If I were a human..." The Matchmaker, played by Mrs. Thistletwat, sets Rod up with Lazar Wolf ("I'm a lonely man, Tevye"). After a very brief interior monologue (I'll be brief, on the other hand, on the other hand, Tradition, sure go ahead.) Tevye finally consents to Princeton and Shprintze's marriage. Rod and Lazar Wolf also wish to be wed, and ask permission from the Tsar puppet, who forbids a gay marriage. Ben Brantley interrupts, asking who the real Jewish people in the cast are, and the company concludes that "everyone's a little bit Jewish" and "in theatre you can be whatever you want to be."

In November 2005, the Avenue Q website held a "One Night Stand" contest for amateur puppeteers and their puppets. Andrew MacDonald Smith and his puppet Maurice Tipo won, and on March 10, 2006, appeared in the evening performance in the opening song, the café scene, and the curtain call.

In July 2006, several members of Avenue Q performed for the opening ceremonies of the Gay Games in Chicago. In October 2006, Jonathan Root and Princeton presented the award for Best Young Adult Novel at the Quill Awards. In November 2006, the London cast appeared on the BBC program Children in Need and performed "It Sucks To Be Me."[42] In December 2006, the London cast performed on the Royal Variety Performance and performed "It Sucks To Be Me," "For Now," and "Special," in which Lucy The Slut suggested through lyrics and dialogue she was making a pass at Charles, Prince of Wales.

The cast and puppets appeared briefly in the 2007 "This Is New York" tourist ad campaign.

The cast and puppets took to the stage at Trafalgar Square on 4 July 2009 as part of the "London Pride 2009" celebration, performing "If You Were Gay", "Special" and "For Now" with 'Lucy The Slut' assuring all the ladies in the audience that she is bisexual.

Cast members appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on August 13, 2009 to promote the last month of shows, performing "The Internet is for Porn" for the first time on national television.

The original cast recording was made on August 10, 2003, at Right Track Studio A in New York City, produced by Grammy Award winner Jay David Saks for RCA Victor. The album contains almost all of the music from the show, with the original Broadway cast and orchestra. Released on October 6, 2003, it has been in the top ten of the Billboard Top Cast Album Chart since the chart's launch on January 12, 2006.[44] It was nominated for the Musical Show Album category in the 2004 Grammy Awards.[45] According to Playbill, it was likely the first cast recording to use a Parental Advisory label.[46]

An Original Madrid Cast Album was recorded live at Teatro Nuevo Apolo on October 9, 2010 and released on November, 2010.

Avenue Q received generally favorable reviews, both nationally and internationally.

New York Times theatre critic Ben Brantley called it a "...savvy, sassy and eminently likable...breakthrough musical", and compared its potential long-term influence to West Side Story and The King and I.[47]The New Yorker described it as "...an ingenious combination of 'The Real World' and Sesame Street".[48]The Times described it as "...how Friends might be if it had Fozzie Bear and Miss Piggy arguing about their one-night stand, but with more angst, expletives and full-on puppet sex."[49]

^Johns, Ian (2006-05-29). "These toys are really us-Arts & Entertainment-TimesOnline". Entertainment news and arts news from The Times and Sunday Times -TimesOnline (London: Times Newspapers Ltd). p. 1. Retrieved 2007-04-15. During early previews in the States we invited Jim Henson's widow and children and they could see that what we were doing was an homage and love letter to Sesame Street.Johns, Ian (2006-05-29). "These toys are really us". The Times (London: Telegraph Newspapers Ltd). Retrieved 2007-04-15.